Yale Religion

Yale Divinity School alum and cinema scholar Richard Lindsay discusses the history of biblical films in Hollywood – from the influence of the Cold War and American culture on iconic biblical epics to the surprising ways camp and queer style shaped how these stories were told.

Yale Divinity School alum and hospice chaplain Reverend Aaron Klink discusses how spiritual care complements modern medicine, a near-death experience that transformed his understanding of mortality, and the enduring question of God’s presence in suffering.

https://divinity.yale.edu/news/2025-05-06-where-is-god-in-suffering-spiritual-care-mortality-and-meaning-with-hospice

Professor of American Religious History Tisa Wenger discusses how the early US government used Christianity to justify indigenous land theft, the limits of religious freedom in America, and the importance of Yale’s new certificate in Native American and Indigenous studies.

A transcript of this episode can be found here: https://divinity.yale.edu/news/2026-04-06-religion-power-and-indigenous-lands-a-quadcast-interview-with-tisa-wenger

Socio-cultural anthropologist Todne Thomas, Associate Professor of Divinity and Religious Studies at Yale Divinity School, discusses researching a 2015 arson of a predominantly Black church in Tennessee, what it says about humanity, and why in-depth study of American religious life is critically important.

https://divinity.yale.edu/news/2025-12-12-what-a-2015-church-burning-reveals-about-race-religion-and-life-in-america-with

Yale University Professor of History and Religious Studies Carlos Eire discusses evolving Protestant and Catholic views on miracles, the history of near-death experiences, and ‘hot button issues’ including the celibacy rule for Catholic priests.

https://divinity.yale.edu/news/2025-10-15-the-history-of-miracles-and-near-death-experiences-quadcast-interview-with-carlos

Andrew McGowan, Dean of Berkeley Divinity School and Professor at Yale Divinity School, discusses the origins of today’s Christian practices, which Christian rituals were lost over the centuries, and why the famous biblical story of Abraham and Isaac is about trust, not sacrifice.

Ryan Darr, YDS Assistant Professor of Religion, Ethics, and Environment and an expert on multispecies justice, discusses rapidly accelerating species extinctions, why they matter from an ethical and theological perspective, and why responses to the climate crisis and biodiversity loss requires less individual action and more new kinds of communities.

https://divinity.yale.edu/news/species-extinctions-and-why-they-matter-quadcast-interview-ryan-darr

YDS Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity Teresa Morgan discusses what attracted Greeks and Romans to Christianity in the religion’s first centuries; how Greek and Roman societies shaped Christian teachings; and the challenges she faced as a female priest.

Yale SOM grad Bryan Enriquez ’21 discusses launching the Hallow prayer app, argues that technology and artificial intelligence are good for religion and religious practice, and responds to critics who say that the marketing of Hallow commercializes faith.

Transcript available here: https://divinity.yale.edu/news/quadcast-developing-1-religion-app-world-bryan-enriquez

Professor John Grim, co-director of the Yale Forum on Religion and Ecology, discusses the relationship between indigenous religions and the environment, why religion needs to be part of the fight against climate change, and shares how he responds to climate change deniers.

Transcript available here.